There was a time when June meant copious rains. Lakes, rivers, and reservoirs would over-flow and politicians would take the opportunity to offer prayers to these water bodies. Called as offering of bagina, politicians used the occasion to get publicity in the media. This state-sponsored ritual has significance as it is a form of thanksgiving to the rain gods for their bounty which would help farmers’ carry out their agricultural operations smoothly, resulting in the overall economic prosperity.

What is going on now on the river fronts stands in stark contrast. This time, the state is sponsoring a ceremony to immerse the ashes of the Covid victims. Revenue Minister R Ashok who oversaw the arrangements for this ceremony recently on the banks of the river Cauvery claimed that he considered it his privilege to do this traditional post-cremation ceremony as it is a belief that when the ashes of the dead, preserved in small clay pots, are immersed in the flowing waters, the souls of the deceased attain their liberation. The cultural significance of the belief apart, the minister’s exuberance over his participation in an event of this nature is absurd. The government instead of lamenting the fact that a situation like this has arisen, primarily because of its own multiple failures, seems to be considering it as an achievement that it could organize the event.

As thousands of people fell victim to the dreaded Covid-19 pandemic in the absence of immediate medical attention, the relatives were too scared to perform the last rites of the victims or in some cases, they did not have the resources to do this. Instead of taking pride in the fact that the government could sponsor the ritual in which the unclaimed ashes of victims were duly released into the river, the government should have used the occasion to introspect over its all-round failures which had led to the death of so many people during the pandemic.

Earlier, ministers of this government had taken pride in the fact that they were able to put up temporary cremation grounds and to provide refreshments to those who brought bodies of their near and dear for cremation. This was when the existing crematoria in many parts of the state could not cope with the pressure of steady flow of bodies. Here again, the ministers instead of owning up the responsibility for the death of so many people, which is a direct consequence of gross inadequacy of health infrastructure, used the occasion as a publicity event. Nothing could expose the government’s insensitivity more than this.

Ever since the pandemic started playing havoc, local administration, various social organizations, and even individual volunteers have been disposing off hundreds of bodies, which remained unclaimed. Now, suddenly the minister sprang up to organize this post-cremation ritual and to publicize the event in the media. Generally, these rituals vary widely across castes and communities, and nobody demanded that the state should sponsor a standardized ceremony. Organizing events of this sort is not the primary responsibility of the government. This was obviously a ploy to divert the public attention from the failures of the government, which led to so many deaths in the first place. Second, the government also failed to take action against people who were capitalizing on the people’s misery by allotting hospital beds and life-saving medicines in black market.

More importantly, it is ironical that the state, which has been organizing caste-based vaccination camps privileging priestly classes over Dalits for administering Covid-19 vaccine, is now organizing post-cremation rituals for the dead according to Brahminical traditions disregarding the diverse social traditions that the people followed for this ceremony. The state deputy chief minister’s justification for caste-based vaccine camps, a gross discriminatory practice amidst a humanitarian crisis, was even more disconcerting.  ‘Don’t priests have a right to get vaccinated?’ he asked in response to the criticisms. Of course, the priests have the rights but so do others. The question is why should people belonging to one caste be prioritized over others in the administration of vaccine? At least now, the Revenue Minister, who was so keen on organizing the ceremony for mass immersion of the ashes of Covid victims in accordance with Vedic Brahminical traditions, should take up the responsibility of arranging free vaccination for the less fortunate castes and communities.

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London, Nov 22: A bomb disposal squad deployed as a “precaution” to the South Terminal of Gatwick Airport concluded an investigation into a "security incident" on Friday after making a “suspect package” safe.

The South Terminal of Gatwick Airport, the UK's second busiest airport after Heathrow, which was briefly shut owing to the incident reopened following the incident.

The Gatwick is around 45 km south of London.

Two people detained during the enquiries have since been allowed to continue their journey as the airport was opened.

“Police have concluded their investigation into a report of a suspect package at Gatwick Airport. Officers from the EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) team made the package safe, and the airport has been handed back to its operator,” Sussex Police said in an updated statement.

“Two people detained while enquiries were ongoing have subsequently been allowed to continue their journeys. There will remain an increased police presence in the area to assist with passengers accessing the South Terminal for onward travel,” the statement added.

Earlier on Friday, the incident caused severe disruption at the busy airport’s South Terminal, while the North Terminal of Gatwick Airport remained unaffected.

“Police were called to the South Terminal at Gatwick Airport at 8.20 am on Friday (November 22) following the discovery of a suspected prohibited item in luggage,” a Sussex Police statement said.

“To ensure the safety of the public, staff and other airport users, a security cordon has been put in place whilst the matter is dealt with. As a precaution, an EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) team is being deployed to the airport. This is causing significant disruption and some roads around the South Terminal have been closed. We’d advise the public to avoid the area where possible,” it said.

Footage on social media taken outside the airport showed crowds of frustrated travellers being moved away from the terminal building.

Gatwick said it was working hard to resolve the issue.

“A large part of the South Terminal has been evacuated as a precaution while we continue to investigate a security incident," the airport said in a social media post.

“Passengers will not be able to enter the South Terminal while this is ongoing. The safety and security of our passengers and staff remain our top priority. We are working hard to resolve the issue as quickly as possible.”

Train and bus services that serve the airport were also impacted while the police carried out their inquiries.

In an unrelated incident in south London on Friday morning, the US Embassy area in Nine Elms by the River Thames was the scene of a controlled explosion by Scotland Yard dealing with what they believe may have been a “hoax device”.

“We can confirm the 'loud bang' reported in the area a short time ago was a controlled explosion carried out by officers,” the Metropolitan Police said in a post on X.

“Initial indications are that the item was a hoax device. An investigation will now follow. Some cordons will remain in place for the time being but the majority of the police response will now be stood down,” it added.